Tuesday, March 31, 2009

That's My World Tuesday #24: Ah, Spring


"Spring House In The Mountains"
Blue Ridge Parkway, NC - February 2001 (Click to embiggen)

Be a virtual tour guide on That's My World Tuesday
In case you missed it: Check out my entry in Nicole B's Scavenger Hunt!

In another time, this "spring house" served as a refrigerator for the mountain cabin you can't see in this photo. Built over the point where an underground spring came to the surface of the land, the structure was well shaded by trees and used to store milk, butter and meat for future use. The chill of the spring kept the interior surprisingly cool even during the summer months, and food could be immersed in the spring in waterproof containers during the hottest seasons.Violence UnSilenced
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27 comments:

ArtistUnplugged said...

I love this image...wasn't it a neat little concept for the time.

Sylvia K said...

I love it! Things were so much simpler then! not that I want to go back, but there is something soothing about the simplicity that we surely don't have now. But then they had problems that we don't so I guess it evens out! Thanks for a great post for "Your World"!

Photo Cache said...

great image. a trip back in time, thanks for the education.

Photo Cache said...

oops I forgot to mention my entry is over at http://ewok1993.wordpress.com

Robin said...

Great photo, and very cool back-story. Love the shingles.

Janie said...

Pretty cool (pun intended) to have a handy spring in your yard to build a house over. I never realized this was what a spring house was. Interesting, and great photo.

Carver said...

Great idea for spring. I love the shot.

Louise said...

Very nice photo of a wonderful subject. It amazes me the creativity used to live before electricity was available.

kayleen said...

Neat photo, interesting information. I had heard of spring houses, but don't guess I ever knew what they really were.


Nebraska Birding

Grammy said...

That is amazing to have a place like that. And to know back when it was built that it would work like that, Great photo too.

Esther Garvi said...

I learn new things every time I visit your blog! Had no clue what a spring house was!

Tarolino said...

What a wonderful piece of history. The b&w image really gives it a historical feel.
Before the age of fridges people in Finland had earth sellers. Ie. cellers dug into earth with a stairs going right under ground. Very effective they were both in winter and summer.

Arija said...

Love the all wooden and shingled cooling shed, wood is wuch a good insulator. Spring water is often very cold and a whole hut as a makeshift cooler was a great asset. I know in rural Latvia milk cans were lowered into the well in summer before they were collected.

Guy D said...

Wow not everyone can make an old shed look beautiful, fantastic photo!!!

Have a great week!
Guy
Regina In Pictures

Jane Hards Photography said...

Sometimes we need to look to our past to see our future. We could definitely learn athing or too. This is a binus mono too.

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Mojo: Congrats on being the first on the list of My World. What a neat shot of the spring house. I can only imagine how sweet the water tastes.

SandyCarlson said...

It has definitely lasted longer than most modern fridges.

That's a great B&W.

Unknown said...

Wow, so interesting and very resourceful of them. Love the way you showed the image.

Unknown said...

I have now voted...Congratulations for a well done hunt! So cool and I enjoyed it. :)

Barb said...

This is a very "cool" old-timey photo, Mojo - I really like the black and white.

Anonymous said...

Love the post, and the photo! Reminds us how simple life was. :-)

Ebie said...

This is a very interesting post. Thanks for sharing. Yehey! spring is here.

maryt/theteach said...

Mojo, we used to come across the spring house up in the forest in the mountains in New York State. There wasn't any water but it used to be so cold in there. And in the middle of the summer, quite a pleasure! I love your photo! :)

Latane Barton said...

Refrigeration in any form. That's a good thing.

The Good Life in Virginia said...

great shot and very interesting post. enjoyed both.
have a great afternoon.

Russ said...

Very nice. Great lines and textures.

Unknown said...

Neat picture, we have a few of these around us.